Where angels fear to tread
by Flamboyant Flower
Summary: Every good play has a villain. Every good villain has a reason... Krad kidnaps Riku to use her against Dark, but something unexpected happens along the way...
1. The bad angel and the good thief

**Disclaimer**: DNAngel is not mine. Reviews are appreciated and make me update faster. :)

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_Better the devil you know than the __angel__ you don't__. ~ Hama Tuma_

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"Dark!" Krad's terrifying shout echoed across the empty art museum. The blond angel flew out of the room, trying to find that wretched purple-haired thief. His golden eyes moved quickly, intent on noticing anything familiar.

'Dark, don't move or he'll see us!' Daisuke wasn't planning on getting caught in a fight between the two works of art. He had an exam tomorrow.

"Shut up, Daisuke, I'm not gonna hide from him any longer!" Dark made a move to get in front of the statue he was currently hiding behind of, but Daisuke just kept pulling him in the opposite direction.

The red-haired boy replied. 'No, Dark! I have to go to bed early, okay?'

Dark sighed, annoyed. "Dude, you're such a freaking baby..." He paused and looked around. "Hey, isn't that Riku?"

Daisuke blushed. 'Where?'

"I can hear her voice, it's coming from a corridor on the left."

'What?' Daisuke panicked. 'Dark, Krad just went that way! He's going to see her, we have to do something!'

Dark smirked, cracking his knuckles. "Now _that's _what I'm talking about!" He swiftly called Wiz and flew after Krad. Spying a blond dot, he shouted. "Hey, homicidal loony, guess who!"

Upon hearing that familiar, annoyingly cocky voice, Krad immediately turned around, landing gracefully. Two cold words passed his lips. "Dark Mousy." His eyes turned hard and he quickly flew in Dark's direction, intent on damage.

Dark dodged him and landed a few feet away from him. He grinned arrogantly. "So, heard you looking for me and decided to take you out of your misery."

Krad merely scowled, his eyes as emotionless as ever. "Your disparaging remarks have become quite plain and show a lack of creativity, Mousy."

The purple-haired boy gritted his teeth. "You can talk, you barely say anything! You usually just keep attacking me like some maniac, I'm actually surprised you took the time to think of words for once."

"Maniac?" The corners of his lips turned up slightly. "Hurtful, but once again lacking imagination."

"I'll show you imag..."

A loud metallic sound interrupted his threat, making both boys look at the entrance of that particular corridor. Standing near a fallen medieval armour was a girl with short brown hair, hand over her heart, staring at the old pieces of shiny metal.

She noticed the two winged boys and, recognising Dark, frowned. Her sister had gotten her into this. 'Why do I always have to follow Risa? She just keeps getting me into trouble...'

Dark lost no time in telling her to leave. "Riku, get out of here, now! It's not safe!" Too late. His eyes widened as he saw a white blur flying past him.

Krad landed behind Riku, swiftly put his right white-clad arm around her neck, and got on one knee, placing his smirking face above her shoulder. Dark's outburst had showed him that this girl, whoever she was, must be important to Dark.

"Let me go!" Riku tried to fight against his hold.

He simply tightened his arm around her neck slightly and whispered, in a deceivingly smooth voice. "Don't move or it will be the last thing you do."

"Krad, let her go! This is between you and me! She's got nothing to do with it!" Dark clenched his fists. The blond maniac was going to pay dearly for this!

Krad parted his lips to show Dark what an intelligent reply sounded like, but suddenly felt pain in his chest. Satoshi was trying to take control and purposefully being painful. 'Not now, Satoshi-sama!' Trying to contain his tamer, he picked Riku up and flew out of one of the huge windows around the corridor that Dark had opened earlier to get in.

"Krad!" Dark flew after him, just to be nearly blinded by a bright light. Shielding his eyes, he saw the crowd below, and the police torches all pointing at him. 'Dammit, the police's here! I can't see him!'

'Let's go back, I'm sure grandpa will have a solution for this.'

The phantom thief glared at the sky in Krad's direction. "He better."

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"Let me go, you brute!" Riku didn't know who he was, but she definitely knew that she didn't like him one bit.

He turned his golden eyes to her. "Are you sure you'd like me to let you go? It's a long way down." As if to prove his point, his grip on her back and knees loosened.

"No!" She grabbed onto his pristine-white shirt. "I meant land and then let me go!" Her eyes widened. 'Wait a minute, he has wings, just like that pervert, Dark.' Great, why did she have to be harassed by winged freaks? She thought angels were supposed to be nice!

"That's not possible." He flinched. It was getting harder to control Satoshi and endure the pain, he needed to get home fast. "Now please be quiet until we get there."

Riku huffed. "Why should I?" He loosened his hold on her again. "Okay, okay!" She glared at him while he smirked, even though only pain filled him now.

A few minutes later, a relieved Krad sighted his tamer's house. Knowing that Satoshi wouldn't want this girl to know who he was or where he lived, he changed the way he was holding her. Ignoring her slight squeak, he let go of her legs and held her back only, pressing her face to his chest, thus making it completely impossible for her to see the way.

The white-clad boy landed on one of the balconies and quickly walked to an empty guest room. Making sure the windows were closed, he left her on the bed, exited the room and locked the door. His chest burned again with a searing white pain, and his breathing faltered. Why was he being so difficult?

'Krad, stop fighting.' Krad's long blond hair shortened, as did his height. His locks turned light blue, while his clothes were changing as well. The gold in his eyes melt to cerulean. Satoshi looked around him. He was home. Directing his gaze to the locked door, he frowned. What was Krad thinking of, bringing one of the Harada twins here?

'She's a valuable hostage, Satoshi-sama. We can use her to lure Mousy.'

Satoshi pondered for a while. It wasn't a bad idea. However, he did not wish the older Harada to know he was behind this, and he didn't want her to suffer either.

'I have an idea.' Krad's mockingly sweet voice rang in Satoshi's ears.

The Hikari heir's response was flat and expected. 'I don't need your kind of ideas.'

"Hey, let me out!" Riku was screaming at the top of her lungs. "This is kidnapping, it's illegal! You're going to jail because of this! What did I ever do to you?"

Satoshi was about to tell her that nothing would happen to her, but stopped as he remembered that she would recognise his voice. But he couldn't keep quiet, people outside would surely hear her and call the police! It would not look good if the young police commander was found to have a kidnapped girl in his home.

'I can help.' Once again Krad helpfully offered an alternative.

Satoshi knew fully well what he was thinking of. He wanted to transform again, that way Riku wouldn't know it was him. However, that way the work of art could do what he pleased. 'No.'

'You have no choice, Satoshi-sama. The girl will recognise your voice, and if you don't speak, she will not stop shouting." He chuckled. "You can trust me.'

The blue-haired boy knew he couldn't trust his ancestor's mad creation, but right now he had no other choice. He could transform back anyway if Krad did something he shouldn't. 'Fine.'

"Let me out!" As Riku held a fist up to continue abusing the door, she heard it unlock. "Finally."

Her blond kidnapper stepped in and closed the door behind him. His wings were gone. Krad knew that without them, Satoshi's body could stay transformed for longer. Plus, he didn't need them right now. "You're a very noisy girl."

Riku huffed. "Well, you're a criminal freak."

He arched an eyebrow at this supposed insult. "Are you the cause of Mousy's cerebral downfall?"

Her mind went blank. "Huh?"

He averted his eyes to the window. "Never mind, I can't forget that he's always been intellectually challenged." He glanced at her again. "What's your connection to him?"

Right, this guy was making her really confused. "What are you talking about? I don't know anyone called Mousy."

He cocked his head. "You must know him, he pleaded with you to run away."

Something clicked in her mind. "Are you talking about Dark?" She saw him nod and her eyes lit up with fury. "I've got nothing to do with that pervert!"

This appealed to his curiosity. "Pervert?"

Riku blushed as she remembered the kiss Dark had stolen from her. Stupid thief.

Krad fought against the urge to smile triumphantly. "I imagine you do not like him then."

She glared at Krad. "Of course not, I hate him! Who would like someone so, so... grr!"

He smiled darkly. This was going better than he could have imagined. "What's your name?"

She blinked. "Riku Harada."

He closed the distance between them, and whispered in her ear, again using that lovely soothing voice. "Well, Harada-san, would you mind helping me?"

Riku didn't answer. Even though he spoke politely, she could see that he wasn't normal. There was an edge to his voice, and a hint of madness behind his eyes. He scared her. His eyes had an unnatural colour, and she didn't understand how it was possible for him to have wings, and now how he had made them disappear. "Who are you?"

He smirked. "Mousy's worst nighmare."

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"Mum, Krad just kidnapped Riku!" Daisuke had sunk to the ground, a mixture of panic, anger and fatigue.

"Dai-chan, you're back!" She hugged her prized little boy. "So, did you steal it?"

"Didn't you hear me? Krad kidnapped Riku!"

Emiko blinked, before the news sank in. "What? Dark, how could you let this happen?"

'Oh, now it's _my _fault?! Tell her you're the one who didn't want me to go afer that maniac!'

"Err... Dark wasn't at his best today."

Dark was fuming. 'What? You lying little...'

Daisuke wasn't in the mood to be insulted right now. "Anyway, we thought grandpa could help."

At this point, Daiki ran to the basement, trying to find anything in a scroll that would help. Towa and Argentine stopped their bickering when they saw him. Retrieving her prized necklace from the blond boy's curious hands, the silver-haired girl turned to the old man. "Daiki-san, what happened?"

The old man answered without taking his eyes off the ancient writings. "Dark's opposite half kidnapped one of Daisuke's friends."

Argentine asked, with no real curiosity. "You mean Krad?"

Towa's eyes widened. "Krad?" It wasn't something the blond work of art usually did.

Kosuke arrived, followed by Emiko and Daisuke. "We should wait for a note, I'm sure he'll use Riku to lure Dark."

Daisuke turned to his father, slightly angry at the suggestion. "But Hiwatari-kun isn't the kind of person who'd do that."

Emiko tried to calm him down. "I believe you, Dai-chan, but according to Dark, Krad is insane."

Kosuke nodded. "And even if Hiwatari-kun wouldn't do that, there's no garantee that Krad won't do it himself if he gets the chance to."

Daiki turned around, shoulders slumped. "I will keep looking in the scrolls, but for now, Towa-san, you can sense magical artworks, so can you try to detect Krad?"

"Of course, I'll do my best!" She walked to the centre of the room and closed her eyes.

"So, can you see anything?" Daisuke was desperate to know what was happening.

Kosuke patted his son's head, gently trying to keep him quiet. "Daisuke, we have to wait. Distracting Towa will only make us have to wait for longer."

After several minutes, she spoke, eyes still closed. "I can sense his aura.". He was with someone, a girl. Could it be Riku? Towa concentrated more. He was saying something, she tried to read his lips. Her eyes snapped open and she fell.

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Krad gave Riku another breathtakingly charming smile. "So, will you help me, Harada-san?"


	2. An angel's play

**Disclaimer**: Not mine.

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_Behind those eyes lies the truth and grief...  
Behind those beautiful smiles I've seen tragedy...  
The flawless skin hides the secrets within  
Silent forces that secretly ignite your sins_

_~ Lucifer's Angel by The Rasmus_

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"Towa-chan, are you okay?" Emiko helped the silver-haired girl to get up. "What happened? Did you see anything that scared you?"

Daisuke was worried sick. Had she seen anything bad happen to Riku? "Is Riku okay?"

"He knew."

Daisuke's mother cocked her head, frowning in confusion. "He knew?"

"Krad. He knew that I was watching him." Her voice was sombre. "He gave me such a cold glare." 'As if he hated me.'

Kosuke read her expression and smiled comfortingly. "Don't worry, Towa. If what Dark says about Krad is true, then he would have done the same to anyone who dared spy on him. It's nothing personal."

Daiki stroke his beard, pondering. "Yes, Kosuke is right. Towa-san, did you see anything else that might help us in finding out where Riku is?"

She massaged her temples, trying to remember anything past those icy golden eyes. "There was a bedroom, I'm sure of it. Krad was there, and I think I saw Riku-chan too."

Daisuke's dad asked. "Were there any windows?"

"Yes, there was one. I could see a city outside of it, but it was already quite dark, so it was impossible for me to see anything else apart from the lights. He created a magic field as soon as he realised he was being watched. " She turned to Daisuke, with guilt-filled emerald eyes. "I'm sorry."

The redhead smiled thoughtfully, even though concern never left his ruby eyes. "Don't worry, you did your best."

Kosuke wondered aloud. "At lest we know it's near a city, so they must be close by. Krad wouldn't go to the trouble of going to a different city." He frowned. "Daisuke, you said that Hiwatari-kun wouldn't do something like this. Is it possible that once he turns back, he'll let Riku go free?"

Dark crushed their hopes. 'Good luck with that, Hiwatari isn't the kind who'd take the chance of being found out just to let some girl go. I'm pretty sure he's going to keep Riku there as long as it benefits him.'

"Daisuke, what did Dark say?"

The spiky-haired boy shook his head. "He's being negative as usual. But I think it's a good idea. I believe Hiwatari-kun is above using a person in this way. I just hope Krad isn't making Riku suffer..." As he was speaking, he felt his body changing.

The purple-haired work of art smirked. "About time." Daisuke had been thinking of Riku so much that it was inevitable that the thief would come out. "Now, here's what I think: I don't believe that the blond maniac is going to let her go until either we find his hiding place or he finds us, and I'm also pretty sure that Hiwatari doesn't care, as long as he arrests me."

'Hiwatari-kun wouldn't do that!'

Dark snorted. 'You're so naive.' "And Daisuke agrees completely. So, I propose we take the initiative. Hiwatari won't want to cause suspicion, so he'll go to school tomorrow. We can have a little chat with him then, and if he doesn't cooperate, I'll follow him home."

Daiki stroke his beard. "That sounds like a reasonable plan."

"There's just one problem." Everyone turned to Kosuke. "Hiwatari-kun will be more alert than usual, so it will be hard for you to follow him without being noticed. We need someone else to do it."

"I can do it." The silver-haired girl put her hand up, volunteering. "I can turn into my bird form and see where he goes."

Emiko sounded worried. "Towa-chan, are you sure? Krad already tried to hurt Dai-chan, it can be dangerous."

The female work of art waved her hand dismissively. "Don't worry, this is the least I can do, since I couldn't find where Riku is." She inched closer to Daisuke's mother. "Just promise me that you won't let Argentine touch any of my stuff. That boy has a knack to disassemble objects."

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"I hate you." Riku huffed the sentence for the one thousandth time that day. The blond had just beaten her again at playing cards. "How come you're so good at this?"

He shrugged. "Years of experience." His gold eyes looked at his bored hostage. She'd refused to help him, something he was already expecting. After all, she didn't know him, and he was sure his first impression wasn't the best it could have been. Actually, it was, since he refrained from killing her, but the silly girl obviously hadn't considered that possibility. So he decided to gain her trust. A simple card game seemed to be a good way to do that. They could talk, and he could find out more about her hatred of Dark and use it to his advantage. Usually, he'd simply use torture to get information, but using her against Dark out of her own free will would be a more fitting revenge. "You still haven't told me why you hate Mousy."

The short-haired girl blushed as the stolen kiss once again invaded her mind. "Do I need a reason?"

The angel smirked. He liked that answer. "_Touché_."

Not for the first time, Riku wondered what he was. He seemed about seventeen, the same age as Dark. But unlike the black-clad thief, he looked more demure, had a bit more class. Even though he had the appearance of an angel, and a rather beautiful one, she knew he wasn't one. No angel would kidnap an innocent girl and ask her to help him in taking revenge against someone else. At first she'd been afraid and suspicious, but after the first few hours, he didn't intimidate her as much. "Why do you hate him?"

His gloved hands abruptly stopped mixing the cards, and his eyes hardened, an indescribable emotion flickering across them. It had happened so long ago, and it shouldn't even matter anymore, but it did. He and Dark had been created as the opposite of each other, and by eliminating the other, one could finally be whole. But that wasn't the only reason. Dark had constantly humiliated him, defeated him, and... "He stole what was meant to be mine." The regretful undertone in his voice was completely overshadowed by the poisoned hatred.

This appealed to her curiosity. Dark usually stole works of art, what could he have stolen from this guy? "And what's that?"

"Something I wish to forget about." He had already managed to forget most of it. His brain was unable to recall the face and the name, but still he knew that Dark had stolen something very important, so important that decades later he still despised the wretched thief. Krad cleared his mind, in order to stop his thoughts from wandering aimlessly through useless 'what ifs'. After all, Satoshi could hear him, and the blue-haired boy didn't need to know his additional reasons to catch Dark. He handed her the deck. "Your turn to deal."

She did as he said, but didn't end the conversation, much to his displeasure. "You know, if you want to forget about it, you shouldn't try to seek revenge. It's contradicting."

"Life contradicts itself all the time."

"That doesn't mean you have to do it as well. Either choose to forget about it and move on, or be a bitter man and let it consume you. But you can't do both things."

"Why not? A man plays many parts in his lifetime." His whole life had been a long, exhausting play, where hundreds of characters had starred in, their status as protagonists and figurines blurring seamlessly into his tired mind, making no distinction between old and new Wing Masters. Of all the people he had known, some had disappeared, some were still around. Most were dead, caught by the unforgivable hand of time. He sighed, suddenly weary. "Life itself is an endless play, full of meaningless drivel, where everyone has their role to play."

Riku gazed at him, thinking about what he had just said. He seemed to be talking more to himself than to her. What was he? "What's your role then?"

He smirked and replied, an insane emptiness filling his eyes. "Ophelia's?"

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Daisuke had to gather all of his willpower not to run and bombard Satoshi with questions. Dark kept telling him to keep his cool and not be brash. The red-haired boy took a deep breath as he opened the door to his classroom.

"Niwa-kun!"

"Ha-Harada-san?" Daisuke's eyes were as wide as physically possible, caught off-guard by the crying girl who was clinging onto him. "What's wrong?"

Risa sobbed. "Riku disappeared! She didn't come back from the museum last night and we have no idea where she is!"

Daisuke gently disentangled her from his person, and tried to calm her down. "Don't worry, I'm sure she's okay. The police are probably trying to find her right now."

"You really think so?"

It broke his heart to lie to her. 'I'm not really lying. The police must be looking for her.' He didn't have to answer, though.

"Absolutely, my dad's working on it right now! The older Harada twin will be back home in no time." Takeshi grinned proudly.

The long-haired girl dried her eyes. "Thank you, Saehara-kun and Niwa-kun. You're good friends."

Seeing Risa walk away, Takeshi exclaimed, excited. "Yo, Niwa, wanna come and investigate this case with me? I'm completely sure Phantom Thief Dark's the one behind it."

Daisuke sweat-dropped. "D-Dark? What makes you think that?"

"Last night, I was there outside the museum, trying to get some pictures, and the cops saw Dark coming out of the museum. And..." He took a picture out of his pocket. "...I have evidence that it's him. Look."

Daisuke looked at the photo. It was quite dark, but it was possible to see a winged silhouette carrying someone. He knew it was Krad, but anyone else who saw it would automatically blame Dark. "You can't see the person's face... It might be someone else."

Takeshi looked at him as if he was a complete idiot. "What? Who else has wings? Dark's the only one, and he was seen by the police, so it must be him!"

"I see..." Daisuke's attention was diverted to the door that had just opened, specifically to the person who had opened it. "Sorry, Saehara-kun, I have to talk to Hiwatari-kun." He waved a goodbye to his friend and walked up to Satoshi's desk. "Hiwatari-kun, can I have a word with you?"

The blue-eyed boy fought against the urge to sigh. He really didn't want ot have this conversation. His morning had started badly already thanks to the construction works near his apartment. 'Your plan is already giving me a headache, Krad.' "About?"

"Riku has been kidnapped."

"Oh. That's terrible. Does anyone have any leads?"

Daisuke hesitated. He and Satoshi had an unspoken agreement of not talking about their alter-egos at school. 'What should I say? Dark?'

'Just tell him that you saw Krad kidnapping her! We don't have time to waste!'

"Hiwatari-kun, I saw Kr..."

The young commander interrupted him. "Niwa, I assure you that I am trying my best to find and return Harada-san to her home."

"Th-Thank you."

'Daisuke, what the hell are you doing? You're letting him off that easily?'

'Dark, can't you see that he's on our side? He said he's trying his best, he's protecting Riku.'

The thief snorted. 'So we're going to let him go, just like that?'

'I never said that. The sooner Riku is safe, the better. Towa-san can follow him later.'

After school, Daisuke met Towa outside the school gates, careful not to be seen. "Towa-san, are you ready?"

The pretty girl grinned. "Yep!"

"Okay. As soon as you find where Hiwatari-kun lives, come back right away to my house and tell us. Don't do anything risky."

"Don't worry." A cloud of pinkish-purple smoke appeared around her, and a bird came out of it, flying above a certain blue-haired boy.

As Satoshi walked next to the construction works near his house, Krad felt something. 'Satoshi-sama, we're being followed.'

Satoshi looked behind him, and then around the area, discreetly. 'I don't see anyone...'

'I can feel it...' It was familiar. He remembered he'd felt this aura before...

"Ugh!" Satoshi clutched his stomach and tried to steady himself, feeling the beginnings of a transformation. 'Krad, what are you doing?! You can't come out now!' Krad didn't answer, and the pain just grew stronger, threatening to rip him apart. His right hand moved of its own accord, facing the sky. 'Krad, what are you doing?!' The floor disappeared, and everything went dark.

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**A/N:** Sorry for taking this long, I've been really busy finishing up my other stories . And sorry if I'm using the wrong honorifics, I haven't read the manga in a while and I've forgotten a bit... I hope you liked this chapter. Reviews are very appreciated :)


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